New Titles

Il Monoteismo Hindu. La storia, i testi, le scuole

By
F. Squarcini, C. Bartoli
with a Foreword by A. L. Basham

Pisa:
Pacini,
1997

ISBN: 88-77-81-193-5, Pp. 191, ITL 29,000

Review by Paolo Magnone,
August 1st, 1998

Under the auspices of the fabulous Churning of the
Milk Ocean chosen as ouverture, the A.s set out to
their quest for the quintessential principle of
transcendental unity buried deep at the root of the
wondrous proliferation of spiritual icons and
paraphernalia first confronting the naif Indian
enthusiast. And as the amRta emerging after many
prodiges is held forth by the divine healer
Dhanvantari (in the particular version chosen by the
A.s) so is the unity principle they are seeking
incarnated in a specific (i.e.: VaiSNava) expression
of Hindu theism, or, as they dare say, albeit with a
cautionary hyphen: mono-theism.

The discussion of the subject proper, i. e. VaiSNava
theology, is prefaced by some considerations on the
inevitable impact of the indological interpretative
codes on the research matter. In the process of
cultural translation the subject is invested, as it
were, by methaphors entailing a semantic accretion
which consistently modifies the subject itself. A good
example in point is the notion of dharma: often
translated by Western indologists as "religion", it
has ended up with transforming by a sort of feedback
the self-awareness of (some) Indians, who now perceive
their own dhArmikatva as "religiousness". This is not
necessarily obnoxious, from the A.s' viewpoint, which
is also the viewpoint of intercultural
(interconfessional) dialogue. The impact of the

cultural methaphors causes "salutary microfractures
and chinks that if viewed from a stand of reciprocal
hospitality may foster a useful and constructive
osmosis of knowledge". Accordingly, the A.s' avowed
aim has not been to discard insofar as possible the
indological constructs for the thing itself, but to
temper them with the indigenous traditional voices and
make the best of both worlds to reach the utmost
understanding.

In this frame, chapter 2 is devoted to a quick
excursus of the history of indology, while chapter 3
comes to grips with the well-known problem of the
elusiveness of the concept of Hinduism. Between the
opposites of those who hail it as the genuine unitary
expression of a great time-honoured tradition rooted
in the sacred Veda, and those who regard it as a mere
artifact of recent times, that could be best dispensed
with in favour of the more definite notions of the
different saMpradAya-s, a middle way is opened up by
the so-called polythetic-prototype approach, according
to which the concept of Hinduism is neither entirely
arbitrary, nor altogether monolithic: rather, it
admits degrees of applicability according as its
subject are 'prototypical' to a greater or lesser
extent. (Disguised in a fashionable garb here goes
again, methinks, the venerable Aristotelian doctrine
of analogy as a middle term between equivocity and
univocity).

Similar considerations are brought to bear on
VaiSNavism in chapter 4: to draw a coherent picture of
the VaiSNava world as a whole may very well be a
helpless task, still a deep rooted affinity centered
on some pivotal motifs is unmistakably perceived
beyond all differences of the several traditions. Such
affinity is primarily rooted in the common scriptural
knowledge, handed down in various ways but apauruSeya
in origin. This knowledge, though, can only be
accessed through practice of spiritual discipline, and
particularly through bhakti, which the A.s envisage as
the foremost of the "exegetical means".

The next chapters finally delve into the subject
proper by discussing the historical development of
VaiSNavism from the Vedic sources (ch. 5) through the
epic period (ch. 6) to the medieval schools (ch. 7),
while chapter 8 is devoted to a presentation of the
literary sources. By way of epilogue, the A.s remark
on the frequent surfacing of a dicotomy between
scholarly and traditional views in the foregoing
pages, concluding that for all its conservatism,
tradition is not opposed to reason, hence to
reasonable innovation, as is testified by the
multifaceted developments of VaiSNavism itself; and it
is exactly the dialogic interaction between the
insider's experience and the symphatetic outsider's
criticism that can best contribute to the continuous
vitality of tradition.

The book is very well documented by an extensive
bibliography and hundreds of references -- even too
much so: hardly ever do the A.s venture an assert of
their own without deferring the responsibility for it
on the standard Indological textbooks which are called
to witness over and over again. This makes for awkward
reading, as well as for a certain patchwork
impression, where the most diverse pieces of
indological thought are (sometimes hazardously)
brought together to serve the overall design meant by
the A.s. The A.s' reliance on secundary literature may
also rest on some degree of uneasiness with the
primary sources, as is betrayed by occasional
misunderstandings of Sanskrit texts1, confusions of
grammatical gender2, miscompliance with
the standard convention for the quotation of Sanskrit
terms3
or other minor slips seemingly originated by
linguistic unawareness4. But on the whole the
book fulfils the A.s' purpose of building a fresh
opportunity of dialogue by bringing together the
different voices of the devotee and the researcher in
the interest of mutual understanding.

Endnotes

E.g. on p. 52 the expression
pauruSeya-zabdApramaNakatve quoted from Das
Gupta quoting VyAsa TIrtha does not 'describe
the concept' of apauruSeya nature. As Das
Gupta's complete quotation runs, pauruSeya-
zabdApramANakatve sati sapramANakatvAt
constitutes an argument for the eternity of
the Veda, on account of its being a valid
means of knowledge (sapramANakatvAt) though
not deriving its validity from human authority
(pauruSeya-zabdApramANakatve sati).
Incidentally, this apauruSeya nature does not
pertain to the ('le' pl.) zruti, the smRti and
the vedAnta darzana, as the A.s say, but
exclusively to the Veda. On p. 55 the passage
ataH zrI-kRSNa-nAmAdi / na bhaved grAhyam
indriyaiH /sevonmukhe hi jIhvAdau / svayam eva
sphuraty adaH is boldly rendered (between
quotes) "as long as one abides in duality, in
the dimension of the senses, the empirical or
intuitive comprehension of the supreme God
cannot be obtained".
↩

Rta-Ritu
An Exhibition on Cosmic Order and Cycle of Seasons (Jan 4 - Mar 30 1966)

New Delhi:
Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA),
1996

Pp. 95

Review by Paolo Magnone,
August 1st, 1998

This is the catalogue of the fifth of a series of
IGNCA exhibitions aimed, in the A.s' own words, at
"viewing fundamental concepts on universal themes that
cut across diverse cultures", following upon the
preceding presentations devoted to kha, AkAra, kAla
and prakRti.

After tracing the origin of the Indian concept of Rta
to the Rg Veda and sweepingly equating it with the
principles of Chinese tao, Islamic haqq, Greek logos
and Buddhist dhamma, the booklet goes on to expose its
reflexes in the different domains of Cosmic Order,
Cycle of Life, Spatial Order, Moral Order, Ritu Cakra
and Eternal Recurrence, which make up individual
chapters due to the pens of different authors.

The accent is aptly laid on pattern, rhythm and rite
as expression of spatial, temporal and social order,
lavishly illustrated by photographs and drawings
revealing the hidden symmetry underlying apparent
asymmetry in phaenomena, or, to put it in Jung's words
as quoted by one author, the cosmos hidden in all
chaos. The whole is interspersed with numerous
quotations both from Oriental and Occidental sources,
building up a sort of polyphonic hymn to Universal
Order, as was the original purport of the exhibition.

It might be doubted, however, whether all the voices
enlisted do indeed sing in tune. Not to mention minor
flaws (such as the unintelligible quotation of
Empedocles's fragment from Aristotle's Rhethorich
(sic) at p. 8), one instance strikes the eye. At p. 63
the well-known drawing Homo ad circulum by Leonard
(after Vitruvius), embodying the Renaissance ideal of
man as centre of the universe and measure of all
things, has been made to serve anonimously as "an
artist's visualisation of the fragmented man", as the
caption runs. This is the major problem with many such
well-meaning transcultural approaches, that in their
craving for unity they only too often fall short of
even realizing what actual cultural differences there
are.

But on the whole the catalogue is nicely laid out and
makes agreeable, and sometimes inspiring reading for
the intended audience.

Aforismi dello Yoga (YogasUtra)

By
Patanjali, transl. by Paolo Magnone

Torino:
Promolibri,
1991

Pp. 183, ITL 24,000

Review by Enrica Garzilli,
August 1st, 1998

This is an accurate translation into Italian of the
famous PataJjali's YogasUtras. The book includes an
introduction, the traditional division into four
chapters of the original text, and an appendix with
the notes on the present translation.

The first main quality of this translation is the
translation itself which is literal, and yet perfectly
understandable, without the usual neologisms and
(pseudo-) sophistications of many Italian translations
of other texts (that compelled the reader's mind to
bothering twistings). Each verse is transcribed into
Roman letters and then translated into plain, yet
elegant Italian.

The second main quality is the unusual choice of
translating the commentary RajamArtaNDa of the king
Bhoja (11st cent.), which accompanies each verse. In
fact, the text has been largely translated into many
languages, including Italian (by C. Pensa in 1978),
with the commentary of VyAsa. There are two other
translations into English of Bhoja's commentary, both
of the last century and somehow incomplete (by J. R.
Ballantyne and G. Z. Deva in 1852-1868, and by R.
Mitra in 1883).

After Bhoja's commentary, Magnone has added an
original "sub-commentary" which has been composed by
the A. himself "according to the Indian tradition and
in the spirit of king Bhoja himself, freely rephrasing
the thought, resorting, according to the need, to
other commentators, making a synthesis and adding any
information which is useful to improve the clarity of
the text" (editor's trasl.). This sub-commentary has
been composed having in mind all the main Sanskrit
commentaries of the text.

Our regret is that Magnone's book can be used by a
limited number of scholars and general readers - -
only who knows Italian well enough to appreciate it.
Moreover, the book itself has not been duly
distributed and promoted by the publisher, and I
happened to know it only when the Author himself
donated a copy to me.

Brahmins of Nepal

By
Prakash Raj

Kathmandu:
Nabeen Publications,
1996

Pp. 47. Price: Nep. Rs 100, Ind. Rs. 70

Review by Enrica Garzilli,
August 1st, 1998

This booklet provides useful information on one of the
most important ethnic groups in Nepal, which has given
not only Hindu priests and Sanskrit scholars, but also
most of Nepal's communist leaders. There are only a
few books written about this caste. The Author himself
belongs to it: his gran-father, Hemraj Sarma, was the
royal teacher. He also was an excellent Sanskrit
scholar to whom all the European and Asian scholars of
the first half of the century abundantly resorted in
order to have rare manuscripts, rare books, scholarly
information and suggestions, and intercessions near
the King. He also donated his collection of some 6,000
manuscripts to the Royal library, now public library,
in Kathmandu.

The publication is divided into short chapters:
Brahmins of Nepal, Geographical Distribution, Origin
of Brahmins of Nepal, Hill Brahmnins and Terai
Brahmins, Rituals Associated with Brahmins, Festival
Celebrated, Contribution and Role in the National
Integration of Nepal. It also includes six appendices
on surnames and districtwide census of brahmins, a
glossary of the main Nepali words referring to
brahmins, and a bibliography.

This booklet is a precious source for the study of
social history of Nepal, and of one of the most
scholarly proficuous ethnic groups of South Asia.

Mongolian Portrait - Land of Big Skies

A photographic essay by
Andrew Pax

Plymouth, Vermont:
Five Corners Publications Ldt.,
1996

ISBN: 1-886699-03-8. Pp. 60

Review by Enrica Garzilli,
August 1st, 1998

This photographic essay gives the usual excellent
photos with an excellent graphic realization on an
excellent glossy paper os any other book of this kind.
The subject of the essay is quite different from the
other travel photographic books though, since the
Mongolian traditional culture, like the Tibetan
traditional culture, has been almost destroyed by the
Soviet governement. The country has been reopened only
in 1989. As explained below a photo at p. 9, by 1990
there was one active (Buddhist) monastery with only
110 monks. The Author reports that, according to
Mongolian friends, 30,000 to 40,000 monks were killed
by the Communists.

Therefore, welcome to the "usual" excellent
photographic book on Mongolia.